The Invasion of Rivendell
by SkyFire2
Summary: Like the title says. Rivendell is invaded by....


The Invasion of Rivendell  
By SkyFire  
  
Rating: G  
Summary: Like the title says. Rivendell is invaded by....   
  
A/N: Something that popped into my head when I was working on something *else* the plotbunnies   
just put in my head when I was working on "Thranduil's Longest Day." *sigh* When the plotbunnies   
bite, they bite! Repeatedly! ;oP  
  
2) Celebrian is away in Lothlorien. Can you tell I don't like writing her? It seems she's always   
in 'Lorien... *grin*  
  
Disclaimer: Not mine. Never were. Never will be. *sob*  
  
*****  
The Invasion of Rivendell  
By SkyFire  
  
There were fuzzy green caterpillars everywhere.  
  
Elrond sighed as he looked out over his private garden from behind the closed glass balcony doors.   
The balcony outside was covered with the things, with barely a spot of caterpillar-free stone to   
be seen.  
  
He had no idea where the things had all come from; it seemed that one day there was merely the   
normal amount of the things, the next....  
  
Elrond sighed again, turning away from the depressing sight. After three weeks of   
caterpillar-covered *everything*, everyone was more than a little sick of it.  
  
Well, mostly everyone.  
  
The Twins were having a wonderful time. They seemed to spend most of their time outside,   
presumably roaming the Valley, playing amongst the wriggling fuzzy green beings that carpeted   
Rivendell.  
  
The servants had been forced to put bootscrapers at every door, as even the Elves were unable to   
avoid squishing dozens of caterpillars underfoot whenever they had to leave the somewhat dubious   
safety of their houses.  
  
The Lord of Imladris had long since put aside his long, trailing formal robes in favor of simple   
shirt and trousers, with his feet safely tucked into low boots.  
  
For two weeks now, he had cursed his lack of foresight in putting his study on the other side of   
the House from his family's private quarters. To get there it was necessary to walk a short   
distance outside unless he wanted to more than triple the time needed to get there as he wandered   
the twisting hallways of his home.  
  
The first time he had taken the outdoor route after the caterpillar invasion, he hadn't known not   
to wear his robes. He arrived at his study with caterpillars crawling all over him, rolling a big   
ball of the things along before the trailing edge of his robes. It had only taken two such   
incidents to convince his to put aside his favored robes in place of something more practical.  
  
Because of the open nature of his House, Elrond had been forced to delegate a set of servants to   
endlessly wander the halls, picking up stray caterpillars and putting them back outside where   
they belonged. Apparently, it was a full-time job as a nearly endless number of the things found   
ways to sneak into the House.  
  
Elrond left his study, walked the winding halls of his home, passing one of the   
caterpillar-cleanup crews as he did. Then he came to the doorway that led outside; the shortcut   
to his study.  
  
A deep breath to steel himself, then he opened the door and stepped outside.  
  
Nearly instantly, a half-dozen caterpillars fell onto his head from the edge of the overhanging   
roof as he passed beneath it. Everywhere, he could see fuzzy green caterpillars falling from the   
eaves like rain.  
  
Shaking his head in hopes of losing his unwanted passengers, Elrond walked quickly down the path   
that was his shortcut, feeling the caterpillars squish messily beneath his feet with every step   
he took.  
  
At last, he reached the balcony outside his study. Carefully, he scraped green goo off the bottoms   
of his boots on the scraper, then opened the glass door and went in, quickly closing the door   
behind him.  
  
Glorfindel was already there, going over one of the many lists that were piled on Elrond's desk.   
A caterpillar was wandering unhurriedly over the back of the blond's head. He looked up as Elrond   
entered the room.  
  
"Elrond," he greeted simply. He gestured to his lord's left side. "You have friends."  
  
Elrond looked down to his left and sure enough, walking on his side and left arm were two   
caterpillars. Gently, he plucked them off, opened the door and flung them out into the garden.  
  
"You have a friend, too," he said with a rueful grin, gesturing to the back of his own head in   
indication.  
  
A soft grown, then Glorfindel was gently patting the back of his head, at last pulling the thing   
off of himself. He stared at the crawling thing in his hand for a long moment, as if considering   
giving it a lecture, but then sighed heavily. He got up, went to the balcony door and flung the   
thing outside.  
  
He had just closed the door once more when he saw something strange. Elladan and Elrohir were in   
the garden, carrying a big, covered bucket between them.  
  
"Elrond, look," Glorfindel said softly, gesturing at the Twins.  
  
Elrond came to stand beside him, staring out at his sons. "What are they doing? They can't   
possibly think they can get rid of all the caterpillars!"  
  
But, as it turned out, getting rid of the fuzzy green things was the *last* thing on the Twins'   
minds.  
  
As the two Lords watched, Elladan and Elrohir put the bucket down in a spot they carefully   
cleared of caterpillars, then opened it.  
  
Eyes wide, mouthes hanging open in shock, the two watched in shock as the Twins reached into the   
bucket, pulled out big double handfulls of writhing green and tossed them around, up into the air   
around them, laughing merrily as they did.   
  
They continued until the bucket was empty, then, expressions of determination on their small   
faces, they covered the bucket once more, picked it up, then left, heading away on one of the   
paths out of the Valley.  
  
At last, Glorfindel turned to look at Elrond. "You don't suppose...?"  
  
Elrond shook himself, looked to his friend. He shrugged. "There is only one way to find out for   
sure," he replied.  
  
A sigh from both lords, then the left the study and followed the Twins into the depths of the   
garden, then up a steep path out of the Valley, being careful to stay hidden. In disbelief, they   
watched as the Twins began their search, methodically moving around, slowly filling their bucket   
with fuzzy green caterpillars.  
  
So *there* was the origin of Rivendell's sudden infestation.  
  
When the bucket was only a quarter full, Elrond stepped out from his concealment.  
  
Instantly, the Twins noticed him standing there, arms crossed over his chest, face set in the   
semi-glare he always used on them when he was especially upset about something. They froze.  
  
"Elladan, Elrohir," Elrond said as Glorfindel came up beside him. "You brought all those   
caterpillars to Imladris?"  
  
Chewing on his lower lip, Elladan nodded. "Yes, Ada," he said simply. He smiled brightly. "Aren't   
they cute? They're all fuzzy and green, and they tickle when they walk on you, and-"  
  
"Elladan."  
  
Elrond's voice cut through Elladan's words, froze them in their tracks.  
  
"Yes, Ada?"  
  
"Why did you bring them all to the valley?"  
  
Elrohir spoke. "Ada," he said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "they're *fun*!   
We like playing with them! And we didn't know if the one we found in the first place would stay   
where we left him, so we are bringing *all* his friends so that we will always have lots to play   
with and Fuzzy won't be lonely and leave."  
  
Elrond sighed. Yes, that sounded like something the Twins would think up.   
  
Valar save them all.  
  
"Elladan, Elrohir," he said, "you will *not* bring any more caterpillars into Rivendell." Ignoring   
the immediate protests of 'But, Ada!', he continued. "In addition, tomorrow you will help the   
crews in packing up the caterpillars and taking them out of the Valley, back to where they belong."  
  
The dismay on the identical faces would have been comical under any circumstances.  
  
"But, Ada...!"  
  
"Enough! Now empty this bucket and come back to the Valley with us."  
  
Unhappily, Elladan and Elrohir did as requested upending their bucket, leaving the big ball of   
caterpillars on the ground, where they quickly wriggled away.  
  
Then the Twins followed their Ada and Glorfindel back down into the caterpillar-infested Valley.  
  
***  
  
Four days passed.  
  
Due to everyone's pitching in, the Valley was mostly rid of its caterpillar invaders, a fact that   
Elladan and Elrohir were most unhappy with.  
  
The crews were just carting off the latest load of caterpillars when a sentry came and informed   
Lord Elrond that King Thranduil's party had been spotted approaching Rivendell's borders, and   
that he would be at the House within hours.  
  
In all the caterpillar confusion, Elrond had completely forgotten that he had been expecting   
Thranduil's arrival. He heaved a sigh of relief that the fuzzy green problem was mostly taken   
care of. It wouldn't do for Mirkwood's king to see Imladris in such a state, especially when the   
purpose of the visit was to discuss a possible alliance. If he saw that the Elves of Imladris   
coudn't even hold off an invasion of *caterpillars*....  
  
Luckily, Thranduil would only be staying a few days before leaving again on his way home and, if   
they were careful, he need never find out about their recent problems.  
  
***  
  
Three days after Thranduil's arrival in Rivendell, Mirkwood's king was ready to leave again. He   
was sitting in his assigned guestrooms, waiting for his servants to tell him of the rest of his   
party's readiness to leave, when there was a small knocking at his door.  
  
One golden eyebrow raised in question, he walked over to the door, opened it, and found himself   
staring down at the Twins, Elrond's sons. A small smile found its way onto his face as he looked   
at them; they reminded him of his son Legolas, who was about the same age.  
  
With a small gesture, he motioned for them to come into the room, then closed the door behind   
them.  
  
"What can I do for you?" he asked gently, gesturing for them to sit on one of the couches in the   
sitting room. Once they were seated, he offered them a plate of berries left over from his   
breakfast, which they accepted with happy smiles.  
  
Elladan looked up at him. "A favor?" he said simply.  
  
Thranduil cocked his head to one side, a flicker of curiosity passing across his face. What sort   
of favor could the small ones ask of him? "Ah?" he asked.  
  
Elrohir nodded. He reached into a bag at his waist, pulled out a jar about half the size of his   
head. "Take Fuzzy with you?"  
  
Smooth brow creased in confusion, Thranduil leaned closer, looking into the jar. "Fuzzy?" he   
asked. Then he saw the fuzzy green caterpillar in the jar, contentedly munching on leaves and   
grasses. "You want me to take your caterpillar?"  
  
The Twins nodded. Despite their agreement, both wore unhappy expressions.  
  
Elladan explained. "We caught Fuzzy, but then we thought he would be lonely so-"  
  
"-we brought a *whole* *bunch* of his friends home too, but-"  
  
"-Ada was mad and we had to take them all away again and-"  
  
"-we don't want Ada to make us let Fuzzy go, too."  
  
Thranduil blinked. He was unused to anyone being able to cut into each others' sentences so   
smoothly. Then he frowned again. "You don't want Fuzzy to go away so you want to give him to me?"   
he asked.  
  
The Twins nodded. Again, it was Elladan who spoke first. "We heard you had an Elfling as old as   
us," he said. "And Fuzzy is a *good* caterpillar. I'm sure he would like to live with..." He   
broke off in confusion, then looked up at Thranduil. "What is his name?"  
  
"Fuzzy." Then Thranduil shook himself, realizing that they had meant his *son's* name. "Legolas,"   
he corrected himself.  
  
Elrohir smiled. He held the jar out toward Thranduil. "We're sure Legolas will like Fuzzy."  
  
Mirkwood's king smiled. "I'm sure he would," he said, mind trying to come up with a gentle way of   
refusing their offer. Then the thought occurred to him: Legolas *did* ask him to bring something   
back for him from Imladris, and he *would* like the caterpillar.... He took up the jar, stared at   
Fuzzy for a long moment. Then he nodded. "Yes," he said, looking to the Twins. "If you want me to,   
I will give Fuzzy to Legolas."  
  
Elladan and Elrohir shared a glance, then nodded.  
  
Elrohir held out a small bag that bulged with its contents. "Here is some food for him for the   
trip between here and Mirkwood," he said simply. "He likes to eat leaves and flowers. He likes to   
crawl on noses and fingers and arms and toes-"  
  
Thranduil listened attentively as the two told him of the caterpillar's likes and dislikes, until   
the servants came to tell him it was time to leave.  
  
***  
  
Elladan and Elrohir watched as the Mirkwood party vanished into the distance.  
  
"I hope Fuzzy will like his new home," Elladan said with a wet-eyed sniff.  
  
"Me, too," Elrohir said, eyes as damp as those of his brother. Fuzzy was barely gone and already   
they missed him.  
  
Glorfindel, overhearing the tidbit of conversation and correctly guessing that for whatever   
reason Fuzzy was now on his way to Mirkwood, lay a comforting hand on the shoulder of each   
Elfling.  
  
"Do not be sad," he said. "I'm sure that you will find a new friend soon enough."  
  
Elladan and Elrohir looked doubtful, but said nothing.  
  
***  
  
A week later, Elrond was awakened in the dim grey morning by a cacophony of surprisingly loud   
thumping noises from outside his balcony doors. He groaned, buried his head in the pillows.  
  
Unable to get back to sleep with the racket that was going on outside, he went over to the   
balcony and looked outside.  
  
Apparently, Elladan and Elrohir had found a new friend after all.  
  
This time, the valley was overrun by hundreds of bunnies, eating the grass and every plant they   
could sink their teeth into.  
  
"Elladan!! Elrohir!!"   
  
The shout echoed throughout the Valley.  
  
END  
  
Poor Elladan and Elrohir... and poor inhabitants of Rivendell! ;oP  
  
Like it? Click the button down there and leave the plotbunnies and I some reviews! :oD 


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